the town of adairsville, georgia, about 60 miles north of atlanta. one man was killed when a tree crashed through his mobile home. the storm tossed trucks around the interstate like match sticks. >> i cracked the door and it didn't even going me time. it had me flinging on that door. when it came inside it tossed me straight into the bedroom where the little bathroom is and i stayed in there for a little while. it seemed like it would never be over. >> the system spawned least seven tornadoes through the southeast yesterday. damage was reported from georgia to virginia. another man was killed in tennessee. meteorologist david bernard of our miami station wfor is following the severe weather system. >> it's been a rough 48 hours for the eastern two-thirds of the country. in fact, we can take a look at the map that shows ought of the storm reports since tuesday. those blue areas, over 500 reports of wind damage across the midwest and southeastern united states, and within those,

we have a couple dozen reports of tornadoes where we had a damaging tornado particularly in northern georgia during the day on wednesday. but the good news is the bad weather has moved out and the cooler and dryer weather is moving in today. 50 for a high in atlanta. we're expecting 60 in new orleans as we prepare for the super bowl. in the northeast we're going to see temperatures generally in the 40s and 50s but turning colder by this evening. lake-effect snow through cleveland, buffalo, toronto. snow showers around pittsburgh and a high of 29 as well. and look at the cold in the midwest. only 15 today for chicago. minneapolis, a high of 4. pretty quiet in the west with a little bit of rain in seattle where today we're expecting high temperatures around 49 degrees. i'm david bernard for cbs news miami. well this morning police in alabama are still negotiating with a gunman who has taken a 5-year-old boy hostage. officials say they have no reason to believe the boy is injured. the gunman is holed up with a

boy in a bunker on his property in southeast alabama. the standoff began tuesday when the gunman boarded a school bus and demanded the driver hand over two children. the driver refused and the gunman shopt and killed him and grabbed the 5-year-old boy. there is no apparent relation between the gunman and his hostage. the suspect was due in court yesterday to face a menacing charge. well, gun control took center stage on capitol hill as congress held its first hearing on the matter since the connecticut school shooting amid a push for legislation by the president and some lawmakers. former congresswoman gabrielle giffords, herself a victim of gun lens made dramatic appearance. in a brief plea giffords urged lawmakers to act quickly. >> the time is now. you must act. be bold. be courageous. americans are counting on you. >> at the same hearing giffords'

husband mark kelly pushed forward requiring background checks, but wayne lapierre of the national rifle association said criminals never submit to them. >> we're going to make all the law-abiding people go through the system and then we're not going to prosecute any of the bad guys if we do catch one, and none of it makes any sense in the real world. >> requiring private sellers to require a background check before they transfer a gun is -- i mean for us, i can't think of something that would make our country safer than doing just that. >> during his testimony kelly made reference to another shooting in arizona. a gunman opened fire at a phoenix office yesterday. one person was killed. two others were wounded. and the gunman is on the run. city officials in newtown, connecticut, where 26 people were shot dead at an elementary school are calling for tougher gun control measures. hundreds attended a hearing last night and randall pinkston reports.

>> jesse was 6 years old. >> reporter: scarlet lewis at the site of a picture of her son jesse. he was among the 26 killed at sandy hook elementary school. >> together we can turn the tragedy into the event can turn the tide. >> reporter: lewis and other family members spoke before a panel. the bipartisan panel is considering policy changes following the december 14th massacre. many spoke in favor of new gun laws, a few against. >> the lawless do not observe gun controls, restrictions, or regulations, and this leaves good and lawful citizens at an unjust disadvantage of the lawless. >> reporter: he lost his son to adam lanza's bullets that day. he argued that gun control laws must consider those like lanza who suffer mental illness. >> that a person with these problems could live in a home who had access to among the most powerful firearms available to

nonmilitary personnel is unacceptable. >> reporter: speaker after speaker received standing ovations many or them parents, one, a parent of a survivor. susan aarons' daughter escaped the shooting inside victoria soto's classroom. aarons joined the cal to ban semiautomatic weapons. >> we stop being something to be proud of when we love our guns more than we love our children. >> reporter: this was the last of four public hearings for the task force which will now consider writing new laws. randall pinkston, cbs news, newtown, connecticut. well, one of the latest victims of gun violence in this country, a 15-year-old chicago girl, is getting particular attention because she was shot and killed after performing at president obama's inauguration. she was shot as she walked with friends in a chicago park tuesday afternoon. the gunman was apparently not aiming at her. she was shot in the back as she tried to run.

she is the 42nd homicide victim in chicago this month alone. and coming up on the "morning news," confirmation hearings begin for defense secretary nominee chuck hagel and we'll find out who has been chosen to resurrect the popular twinkies snack cake ahead in "moneywatch." this is the "cbs morning news." cakes ahead. this is the "cbs morning news." and then fill the rest up with cream and it -- mommy, what's going on? what are you doing? so when we did the blonde roast she finally went from a splash of coffee to only a splash of cream. and i thought that was so cool, i said "well she's enjoying this." ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ living with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis means living with pain. it could also mean living with joint damage. humira, adalimumab, can help treat more than just the pain. for many adults,

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at this desk that once belonged to president kennedy and to ted kennedy, i can't help but be reminded that even our nation's greatest leaders and all the rest of us are merely temporary workers. >> an emotional farewell from john kerry yesterday. he spent 28 years as massachusetts's senator and on friday he'll be sworn in as secretary of state replacing hillary clinton. william cohen will replace kerry as an interim secretary up till a hearing in june.

his confirmation hearing to replace defense secretary leon panetta begins today and his biggest critics will be his fellow republicans. susan mcginnis is in washington with the latest. susan, good morning. >> good morning, anne-marie. yeah. headachele will not get the smooth ride that john kerry got on his pass to secretary of state. haggle will face critics who have called him everything from anti-israel to anti-gay to anti-green. this is the first time he addresses those criticisms at a hearing that is critical to determining whether he becomes the next secretary of defense. chuck hagel, a former republican senator from nebraska should not expect a friendly reception on capitol hill this morning. >> president obama should choose someone else to lead the pentagon. >> reporter: texas senator john cornyn laid out the case on wednesday saying hagel is tough on israel and soft on iran. >> he simply does not understand the true basis of the

u.s./israel alliance and he's the same person who suggested the united states might be able to live with a nuclear iran. >> some well funded groups have taken to the tv and websites with ads to oppose his confirmation. >> president obama says he supports sanction, hagel voted against them. >> but hagel has been aggressive in fighting the accusations. he made the rounds here on capitol hill to talk with former colleagues and clarify his position. >> senator hagel and i had a very good meeting to talk about the department of defense and its future as well as his role. >> hagel picked up a big endorsement on the democratic side when he won over new york senator chuck schumer. >> i can now say i will support his nomination and urge my colleagues, many of whom who have had similar doubts to me, to do the same. >> if confirmed he'll be the first former enlisted man and first viet nam vet to become secretary of defense. now, six republicans have

already said they will vote against hagel. senator graham of south carolina said he will block hagel unless current secretary of defense leon panetta testifies about the attacks in benghazi. anne-marie? that susan mcginnis in washington. thank you. well, on the "cbs moneywatch," a surprise setback in the fourth quarter, and no change for boeing's batteries. ashley morrison is here in new york with that and more. good morning, ashley. >> good morning to you, anne-marie. the u.s. economy shrank unexpectedly during the fourth quarter of last year. it contracted by a 0.1% partly because of big cuts in defense spending and the impact of superstorm sandy. it's a decline since the recession started but economists see this as a one-time dip. for all of 2012 the economy expanded at more than 2%. asian markets were mostly lower following some disappointing earnings. hong kong's hang seng lost half a percent while tokyo's nikkei bucked the trend adding a

quarter percent to add to a 33-month high. worries about a slowdown with wall street after a month of gains. the dow fell 44 points to close at 13,910. the nasdaq also fell 11 points. boeing posted fourth quarter profits yesterday that beat wall street's estimates. the company says it's standing by the batteries it uses for its grounded fleet of dreamliners and has reportedly already replaced more than 100 batteries. boeing also said it will speed up the production of the 787. and good news for twinkie lovers. the golden sponge cake is about to make a comeback. hostess has reportedly picked two investment firms to buy its twinkies and other snack cakes. the deal is worth more than $400 million. the announcement could come as soup as next week. so anne-marie, i think it's safe for me to finally open up that emergency box of twinkies i've been hiding. >> i know. i've been hiding them in my basement, thank you, ashley

morrison, in new york. coming up, the countdown to kick-off of super bowl xlvii. we'll show you how some out-of-towners are enjoying new orleans before the big game. time before the big game. [ tissue box ] he said nasal congestion. yeah...i heard him. [ female announcer ] tylenol® cold multi-symptom nighttime relieves nasal congestion. nyquil® cold and flu doesn't. [ female announcer ] when a woman wears a pad she can't always move the way she wants. now you can. with stayfree ultra thins. flexible layers move with your body while thermocontrol wicks moisture away. keep moving. stayfree. how do you get your bounce? i use bounce outdoor fresh sheets because they're just that much fresher and they help keep static off in the cold so my clothes will never embarrass me. mommy, i dressed the snowman!

how do you get your bounce? less static year-round. [ mike ] we are 6th generation fruit farmers and we've been on this ground since 1853. one thing that has stayed the same here for us is our dedication to quality. whoa. [ mike ] it starts at the blossom and it continues until the apples are hand picked just at the right time. mcdonald's has high standards for us. it's our job to see to it that we deliver that good tasting apple. i'm proud to say that apples like ours are now part of every happy meal. yum. ♪ ♪ here's a look at the forecast in some cities around the country. new york, showers, 49. chicago, chilly 18. dlags and los angeles, lots of sunshine, 67 and 76 the high. a little more than three days before the san francisco 49ers and baltimore ravens kick

off super bowl xlvii. on wednesday the ravens held practice on an outdoor field and battled stiff winds. the 49ers had it a little easier practicing in the saints' indoor facility. it's been more than a decade since new orleans has hosted the super bowl and many out-of-town visitors are taking advantage of the city's biggest attractions, the cuisine. vinita nair is there with more. good morning, vinita. >> reporter: good morning. you can't talk about the super bowl without talking about food like the chicken wings. yes, sadly, the rumors are true. they will be slightly administrator expensive this year, just 10%. but there are no shortages and certainly here in new orleans it feels like there's no shortage of anything. ♪ at cafe du monde in the french quarter it's roll, drop, and powder. as usual. on a typical day they are busy. this weekend they expect to get slammed. >> we think we've reach ourd

capacityka capacity. we're bringing in more waiters. >> reporter: he says they have doubled the number of servers for their takeaway business and have ordered extra of everything. h his super bowl weekend goal is for guests to be in and out in under 15 minutes and covered in powdered sugar. >> this is our tenth super bowl, so it's not our first rodeo. >> reporter: across new orleans the super bowl is proving to be a culinary boon. there are many new restaurants and some are charging cancellation fees if you reserve and don't show up. extra bartenders waiters, and kitchen workers are being brought in on buses. shipping is also proving to be a healthy business where they're sending food overnight. owner frank says he uses the best italian cold cuts and a homemade olive salad. the store is normally closed on

sundays, but for the super bowl they're making an exception. >> it's fun and crazy. as long as we can handle the crowds, that's the main thing. >> reporter: while some locals are saying they're leaving the town to avoid the huge crowd restaurants are thrilled. they hope tourists bring plenty of cash. now cafe du monde, which is an icon, i asked them, you have tight quarters, where are you going to put two extra fryers? anne-marie, they're very creative. they have taenlt in the back and that's where the fryers will live. >> they might as well. they'll have the crowds and they'll definitely need it. the only place to see super bowl xlvii is right here on cbs. our kick-off show starts sunday at 6:00 p.m. eastern and "cbs this morning" begins broadcasting from new orleans today. when we return, the worm writes a book. a new chapter for basketball bad boy dennis rodman the color. exhoops star aims for story time for the younger set. rodman. the storybook is amd at the

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from residents in new orleans. how the city by the bay saved how the city by the bay saved the big easy from a terrible mistake. "..."14 who has it better than us! nobody 19..."" both their boys are in the super bowl. but who are the harbaugh parents pulling for? and how the 49ers are lifting the spirits of a young fan, in the hospital. hi i'mmichelle griego live from the big easy all morning.. join

here's a look at today's forecast in some cities around the country. washington, d.c., windy with 48 the high. atlanta also 48. st. louis, partly sunny, 33 the high there. denver, 47. seattle, showers, 51 the high. well, nba hall of famer and sometimes wedding dress model dennis rodman has turned a page on basketball. the retired hoops star is now a children's book author. rodman's first book, "dennis the wild bull" was released yesterday. besides the name the title character shares some of rodman's characteristics. they both have nose rings and tattoos, and dennis was once a member of the chicago bulls. i'm sure it will put the kiddies right to sleep. prince charles and his wife camilla went on a royal ride on wednesday on the london underground. they did it to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the world's

first subway system. the last time prince charles traveled by tube was 1986 when he and his late wife princess diana opened a new terminal at heathrow airport. patty andrews, the last of the andrews sisters,s who music rallied the troons in stroops in world war ii has died. patty was in the middle and she sang the lead in the trio's popular tune "boogie woogie bugle boy." the andrews sisters sold more than 80 million records. she died wednesday in l.a. she was 94. this is the "cbs morning news." news on "cbs this morning," a special preview from new orleans and quarterback drew brooes. am equal? introducing the newest beauty trend. total effects cc cream c for color. c for correction. [ female announcer ] fight 7 signs of aging flawlessly. cc what's possible.

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when law enforcement when law enforcement officials want to track a firearm they go to the national tracing center. it's the only one in the u.s. chip reid takes us inside the operation which at times finds itself buried in old-fashioned paperwork.

>> reporter: when a gun is found at the scene of a shooting one of the first calls made by police is to the national tracing center in martinsburg, west virginia. here 350 employees undertake the painstaking process of tracing guns to identify their owners. charles hauser has been chief of the center since 2005. >> there is a perception, even among law enforcement agencies, that if you send a serial number from a gun up here, that we plug it into a computer and the name of a gun owner pops out as if there's a national registration system. there's no such thing. >> reporter: no such thing because federal law prohibits the creation of a national data system. that ban was first slipped into an appropriations bill in congress in 1979 and became permanent law in 1986 in a law sponsored by two strong supporters of gun rights idaho

republican jam mcclure and harry volknel. both men passed away in 2007. it's been supported by the national rifle association. the nra told us it is opposed to any registry of law-abiding gun owners. so workers here are left with an antiquated system to trace 350,000 guns a year, require them to review by hand tons of paper records and 500 million entries on microfilm. they say it's the law enforcement equivalent of the horse and buggy. the investigators spend much of their time on the phones. >> we actually have to contact the chain -- all the dealers in the chain of distribution. >> reporter: more than a third of the traces involve a gun store that's gone out of business. those records are sent to the tracing center which receives more than a thousand boxes a month. many of the records are barely legible. >> so, for example, these are

records that we received as a result of hurricane katrina. we had to dry these out in the parking lot. >> reporter: you dried these out in the parking lot. >> yes, sir, we did. >> reporter: despite the burdensome process, gun traces that are marked urgent are usually completed within 24 hours, but reteen traces ainge about five days. the atf's workload is about to become even heavier because president obama has proposed that all guns recovered by federal law enforcement agencies be traced. that would add about 100,000 gun traces each year. chip reid, cbs news at atf headquarter in washington. coming up after your local news a special edition of "cbs this morning." charlie, norah, and gayle are live from new orleans with a super bowl preview. we'll hear from saints' quarterback drew brees plus nominee chuck hagel and we'll get reaction from bob woodward. that's the "cbs morning news" for this thursday. thanks for watching. i'm anne-marie green. have a great day.

-- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

>> your realtime captioner: linda marie macdonald good morning, everyone. it is thursday, it's the last day of january. good to have you with us, i'm frank mallicoat here in the bay area. >> and i'm michelle griego live in new orleans counting down to super bowl xlvii. >> michelle, last time we chatted with you, it was raining to beat the band. and i talked to some friends in the big easy last night and i understand it's the big freezey. it's cold there, right? >> i like that, frank. the big freezey, that's exactly what my hands are doing right now, freezing. there is this chill in the air. but take a look at how it looked yesterday on bourbon street. that rain was just coming down

early yesterday morning along with a little thunder, a little lightning, some pretty dark clouds hit our area. it lasted for hours. it was causing a little damage. it made covering the super bowl happenings a challenge for us and other media in new orleans. heavy rain caused ponding at broadcasting locations, getting into a studio at convention center boulevard and crews wrapped plastic around expensive equipment including lights and cameras to keep them from getting wet. but the rain is gone. it's just a little cold out here. >> i guess so. we'll send you some gloves for the weekend. the 9ers had to practice indoors at the saints facility but the harbaugh parents were holding a press conference of their own and it was pretty comical. they are